Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre has one message for controversial men’s rights activist Roosh V: not in my town.
@rooshv @ReturnOfKings are not welcomed in Montreal. No place for hatred and mysogyny here #TurnAwayReturnOfKings https://t.co/zuvIwQqLbi
— DenisCoderre (@DenisCoderre) February 3, 2016
Coderre joined a chorus of Canadian mayors on Twitter on Wednesday , each of whom expressed a desire to keep the blogger out of their cities.
.@ReturnofKings Your pro-rape, misogynistic, homophobic garbage is not welcome in Ottawa #its2016 #TurnAwayReturnOfKings
— Jim Watson (@JimWatsonOttawa) February 2, 2016
.#TurnAwayReturnOfKings, not coming to HFX, not welcome. Thanks @JimWatsonOttawa, other Cdn Mayors for standing up to hate & misogyny.
— Office of the Mayor (@MikeSavageHFX) February 3, 2016
What he said. Goes double for Calgary. Thanks for your leadership on this, Jim. https://t.co/xyD7T1o1wA
— Naheed Nenshi (@nenshi) February 2, 2016
Roosh V, whose real name is Daryush Valizadeh, is known for his anti-feminist views, including once calling for the legalization of rape on private property.
A series of worldwide meetups of Roosh’s followers was planned for Feb. 6, including one in Montreal.
We are aware of the event on Feb. 6 Thank you
— Police Montréal (@SPVM) February 3, 2016
However, after widespread condemnation, on Wednesday evening Valizadeh wrote on his website the event has been cancelled, citing an inability to "guarantee the safety or privacy of the men who want to attend."
The call for action has gone all the way to the federal level. In a statement on Facebook, Conservative Calgary Nose Hill MP Michelle Rempel called on the Liberal government to turn Valizadeh away at the border, referencing the Harper government’s banning of pick-up artist Julien Blanc in 2014.
I hope this is something @johnmccallumlpc will agree with me on. #turnawayreturnofkings https://t.co/xLrBWIruNQ
— Michelle Rempel, MP (@MichelleRempel) February 3, 2016
